The project has been dogged by controversy owing to projected spiralling costs and damage to wildlife. File photo: AFP
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https://scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3050008/uk-set-approve-hs2-high-speed-rail-project-despite-soaring-costs Europe
UK set to approve HS2 high-speed rail project despite soaring costs
- Supporters of HS2 say it will slash journey times and add capacity to Britain’s crowded rail network
- But critics have pointed to the project’s rising costs, reported to be as much as £100 billion
A train bound for Birmingham New Street station waits on a platform at London Euston railway station. The UK's HS2 High Speed Rail project linking London to northern England is behind schedule and over budget. Photo: Bloomberg
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson was set to push ahead with the HS2 high-speed rail project linking London to northern England, despite political opposition and spiralling costs.
The new route will be the UK’s biggest ever infrastructure project – and currently Europe’s largest – but the total price tag could reach more than £100 billion (US$129 billion). The first trains may not start running until 2031.
Johnson was expected to announce his decision to proceed with HS2 on Tuesday, according to people familiar with the matter.
HS2 would be Britain’s second high-speed rail project after HS1, or the line linking London with the Channel Tunnel that goes on to connect the UK with France.
The government will say that the whole of the project which will link London to Birmingham and then split into two and connect the northern English cities of Manchester and Leeds should go ahead, the BBC reported.
The second phase of the project beyond Birmingham, however, will be subject to a review to identify cost savings and integrate new services into existing railways, the BBC added.
The project is highly sensitive politically for Johnson’s government. Backers of the plan say it will cut journey times, increase capacity, create jobs and help link northern and central parts of England to the wealthier south. Boosting the country’s former industrial heartlands is Johnson’s key political mission now that the UK has left the European Union.
#HS2 will be a brand new, low carbon, #railway that also provides an upgrade of the West Coast, East Coast and Midlands main lines: 4 railways for the price of 1. Plus, it will improve rail journeys even further afield across the country. Find out more: https://t.co/R1F8tIcKWQ pic.twitter.com/PqbO6r6j9N
— HS2 Ltd (@HS2ltd) February 6, 2020
He won a majority in Parliament largely thanks to persuading voters in these areas to back him, with some traditionally Labour-supporting districts electing Conservatives for the first time. But many Tory members of Parliament oppose HS2 because the line will cut through their districts, causing severe disruption for thousands of constituents.
A decision on whether to proceed with HS2 will be based on the “evidence”, Johnson’s spokesman, James Slack, said. “Once a decision is reached in relation to HS2, then we will update Parliament.”
Johnson plans to reshuffle his cabinet Thursday, though Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, who is responsible for HS2, will keep his job, officials said.
The biggest HS2 contracts are for the construction of the line and its stations, with at least £11.5 billion of work handed out across 27 tenders as of August.
Balfour Beatty, Britain’s biggest civil engineer, leads the way, holding contracts with Vinci SA of France to design and build bridges, tunnels, embankments and viaducts for the northern half of first phase of the line, valued at about £2.5 billion.
The same two companies, together with Paris-based SYSTRA SA, have been engaged to build a £1 billion hub interchange between HS2, the London subway and the main line to southwest England at Old Oak Common, London.
Additional reporting by Reuters and Agence France-Presse